Journal of the Brazilian Chemical Society (JBCS): 10 anos da criação à consolidação

The main objectives of this article are to present and discuss the facts that lead to the conception of JBCS in 1987, its birth in 1990 and the stages traveled until its consolidation. The community's of Chemistry participation and the role of the Sub-program of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering of PADCT are emphasized.

O impacto do PADCT na química brasileira: uma visão acadêmica

An appraisal has been conducted of the impact PADCT (Support Program for Scientific and Technological Development) has caused on brazilian Chemistry and Chemical Engineering over a ten years period (1985-1995). During this time PADCT invested US$ 87.5 million dollars to support both scientific and technolgical development of chemistry. The main results, from an academic point of view, has been the strengthening of support services for academic research, including libraries and analytical facilities, and a consequent increase of the number and quality of human resources trained at the graduate level as well as a significant increase in the number of scientific publications.

Simulação do processo Solvay no laboratório didático

The Solvay Process is an important route for the industrial preparation of sodium carbonate from brine and CO2. However, experiments illustrating such process are performed only in a few chemistry courses, mainly because of the difficulties to precipitate out the intermediate product NaHCO3 within the 3 or 4 hours generally available for laboratory classes. In this article we describe a method that properly simulates the Solvay process using glass apparatus that can be found in any chemistry laboratory. The good yields and purity attainable, associated with the short time (~3 hours) required to get the sodium bicarbonate, account for the suitability of our method for chemistry or chemical engineering undergraduate students laboratory classes.

A indústria de processamento químico no Brasil: suas motivações para pesquisa e desenvolvimento e suas interfaces com as políticas governamentais

As the Chemical Science is an experimental one a Chemical Industry require technical people in all its staff level: from Directors and Managers to Operators. This chemical and chemical engineering based education is the foundation of the innovate process and motivation. The paper discusses this and the role of Public Policies to improve the R&D and innovation in the Brazilian Chemical Industry.

A criação do curso de engenharia química na escola nacional de química da universidade do Brasil

The goal of this work was to establish the origins of the chemical engineering course at the National School of Chemistry of the University of Brazil (at present, the School of Chemistry of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro). There was a previous Industrial Chemistry course at the Higher School of Agriculture and Veterinary, established in 1920, following the French model. This course was the basis of the creation of the National School of Chemistry in 1933. During the 1940s, teachers and students claimed for a new course in true connection with the needs of the country and to reach full valorization of their job. The structure of the new Chemical Engineering course was approved in 1946 and the first class begun in 1952. This course was of great importance during the Brazilian industrial development during the 1950s and 1960s.

Síntese de biodiesel: uma proposta contextualizada de experimento para laboratório de química geral

The contextualized understanding of concepts in Chemistry by students from other areas is a challenging task. In this experiment, the synthesis of biodiesel is done by base catalyzed transesterification of refined soy oil with methanol at room temperature and common glassware found in any chemistry laboratory. The proposal permits introducing several concepts, such as that of emulsion, viscosity and catalysis to illustrate an activity based on an actual problem. In this didactic approach, some common problems of biodiesel production, such as soap formation and phase separation, are introduced into the procedure in order to raise questions and motivate the students to participate in the experimental work and stimulate reflections about critical aspects of biodiesel production. This experiment was carried out in the first semester of 2006, in experimental general chemistry taken by physics and agricultural, civil and chemical engineering students of UNICAMP.

Planejamento participativo no subprograma QEQ do PADCT

The development of the Brazilian chemistry sector, during the last 30 years, is nowadays being attributed to PADCT (Science and Technology Development Program). Since the seventies, the Government took notice of the importance of research in chemistry for the Brazilian economy, therefore creating PADCT to support chemistry and chemical engineering among other areas of science and technology. Planning and implementation of the second phase of this program represented a real joint strategic planning. Since then, academic research and human resources education have experienced significant improvements. However, in the chemical trade, the deficit continues to grow, in spite of an almost constant ratio between importation costs and export revenues. Continued investments for research in the area remain necessary.

Otto Redlich: chemist and gentleman from the "old school"

The name of Otto Redlich is generally remembered as co-author of one of most used equations of state for the calculation of volumetric and thermodynamic properties of pure substances and their mixtures. Nevertheless, he made also important contributions in different areas of chemistry and chemical engineering. Pursuits of race and religious order forced him and his family to leave his native Austria and emigrate to the United States. His professional career included both academic and industrial research achievements.

Joseph Neng Shun Kwong: a famous and obscure scientist

Many students and professionals in chemistry and chemical engineering related the name Kwong with one of the most remarkable equations of state with two parameters. In the same way, very few people know who Kowng was. This article shows some of the unknown personal and professional facts of Joseph Neng Shun Kwong, a person who devoted almost four decades of his life to the industrial research in the adhesives industry.

O Instituto de Química da Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, da pós-graduação à incorporação dos cursos de graduação: uma perspectiva histórica

This work intends to present the history of top-level Chemistry education in Rio de Janeiro. It's important to rescue the history of Chemistry Institute of Federal University of Rio de Janeiro since 1959. It's also important to understand the incorporation of two undergraduate courses: Chemistry and Chemistry bachelor's degree. It covers historical background of Chemistry education in old National Faculty of Philosophy, considering power disputes between Industrial Chemistry Course and Chemical Engineering; when and in which circumstances the Institute was created; political context and its relation with postgraduate. Finally, discuss the incorporation of undergraduate courses and curriculum modifications since 1968.

Linear-quadratic optimal control of descriptor systems

In recent years the analysis and synthesis of (mechanical) control systems in descriptor form has been established. This general description of dynamical systems is important for many applications in mechanics and mechatronics, in electrical and electronic engineering, and in chemical engineering as well. This contribution deals with linear mechanical descriptor systems and its control design with respect to a quadratic performance criterion. Here, the notion of properness plays an important role whether the standard Riccati approach can be applied as usual or not. Properness and non-properness distinguish between the cases if the descriptor system is exclusively governed by the control input or by its higher-order time-derivatives additionally. In the unusual case of non-proper systems a quite different problem of optimal control design has to be considered. Both cases will be solved completely.